Pyrus Virus: Decepticon
by DuskStarDragon
Summary: Continuation of Pyrus Virus. READ Pyrus Virus if you have not already. Otherwise, really no summary. I'm not very good at them.
1. Forethought

**Foreword**

**Warning!**

If you have not read Pyrus Virus you will not know what is going on this story. This is the second story in a trilogy (planned). Please read Pyrus Virus first!

Alright to those that are still here, this is the third time I've tried to write this story. I ran into some bumps with the other two and they just weren't going the way I wanted them to. So I decided to give up and delete the story all together. I went on to other stories, but this one was still in the back of my head. I just couldn't leave it there. After much thought and consideration, I have gone on and tried to get this story out one more time. If I do start to feel that it's going nowhere again, I'm not going to waste your time with a story I don't have the heart for. Hopefully that hasn't turned anyone away… but you've probably just skipped over this anyway. So why am I still here typing this?

P.S. – I am considering going back through the original story to make corrections, but I would like to get this story going first.

No more here.

Why are you still here?

Shouldn't you be reading the story now?

Go on. Go!


	2. Sari

**Chapter One**

One year after the capture of the Decepticon Leader: Megatron

The ceiling has changed since Sari started to stare at it. There were fourteen black marks form she didn't know where. Towards the middle, but a little to left, there was a dip in the ceiling that only hung down a centimeter or so. Nobody might have noticed such a small dip, but Sari did… or maybe it was because she was staring for too long. Just up from the dip, the ceiling color was a little off on its color. It looked more ivory, then the eggshell white. She laughed; she remembered why. It was from when she was younger. Her dad told her not to jump on the bed, but as any child does, she did the exact opposite. She was trying to jump as high as she could, so she could touch the ceiling with her hands. She didn't know why, but remember she wanted to do that because she wanted to know what it felt like. "Curiosity killed the cat," as the old saying goes. In this case, it ended up with Sari dangling from the ceiling with her hand shoved through it. She yelled and screamed until her father came running into the room. He stood there in amazement for a moment, then jumped up onto her bed and pulled her out. He started to ask why she did such a stupid thing, but the tears in her eyes must have told him everything. Everything from, "it hurts, I shouldn't have been doing that, I know better, it really hurts," to the most important thing, "I'm sorry." He just smiled and wrapped his arms around her to say it was going to be okay.

Sari sat up. She thought about that she hung from the ceiling. Her hand really hurt, but there were no cuts or bruises. She didn't even go to the Emergency Room as all other parents would have. He knew that would have done no good. The doctors couldn't have stopped her pain. She didn't have nerves, bones or sinew… just circuits and metal. Her dad wrapped her hand that night with gauze and put a cool pack on it to dull the pain. She slept in her dad's bed that night, though he stayed in a chair next to the bed. Sari couldn't remember if there was pain the next day or not. It was all kind of a blur to her now. Little memories like that… just seemed… so unimportant these days.

She had so many other things to think about. Whether or not they were import was completely up to her, but she couldn't decide on if she was being selfish or paranoid. She hadn't seen Bumblebee, Bulkhead or the others in two weeks. She just couldn't bring herself to go to the base lately. There were all sorts of things going on that just added to the craziness that was happening.

There was talk of them going back to Cybertron. Bumblebee and Bulkhead had been invited to join the Elite Guard. Ratchet was offered a position on the Scientists/Med-Bot board… or at least that's the way Sari thought of it. Optimus was still considering the Counsel's offer on making him the temporary Magnus. He was more confident than he ever was, but he still felt like it wasn't his place to command… command the fate of a planet and all those that live on it. He even admitted to the Council that he didn't feel he was ready for the job and surely during a time of peace, Sentinel would do a fine job. The Council disagreed, but asked him to reconsider their offer. He didn't at first. All of them didn't, but with little to do on Earth, beside catch the occasional bad guy, they were becoming… bored.

Sari couldn't blame them. Everyday criminals were nothing in comparison to Decepticons. They simply didn't give a challenge. Time on Earth just passed too slowly for them. She couldn't blame them; she was even bored. With all her new abilities, she didn't have anyone to use them on. She felt like she was suffocating. There was so much inside of her that wanted to come out and explode. She couldn't though… there was too much power inside… It made her think… about who and what she was…

She was human because that's how she was raised. She was Cybertronian because that's where she came from. She was both… but either. She was something more than human. She was something else than Cybertronian. With all the time that she's had, she started to think about it all.

Sari sighed and looked into the mirror across her room. She looked normal, though her bright blue eyes looked out of place. Her hands were like any other. There were five fingers attached to one palm. After all that had happen, she felt so out of place. When she went out in public, she felt like people were staring. It was like they knew. She once asked her father if people were, but he said it as all in her head. She tried to believe him, but she knew he was probably just trying to protect her feelings. She was older now… or so she appeared. She thought about things she would have never thought about a year and a half ago… before she asked the key for… an upgrade. Not only had she body grown, but so had her mind and maturity… maybe a little too quickly. There were things that she still didn't understand, but knew. Why… she didn't know.

Releasing another sigh, she started to wish there was someone that she could talk to. Her father, though he was really listening to her, wouldn't understand what she was going through. The Autobots had other things to be worrying about than her mixed up emotions and thoughts. She really didn't have any other friends… she really never had any other friends. The only other person that could even begin to understand what she was going through was an Autobot turned Decepticon that was blasted to who knows where. Not that Sari would speak to her about such personal things, but she was the only other Technorganic that she knew of.

Bring… Bring… it was her phone ringing on the night table next to her bed. Lazily reaching over she looked to see who it was. The front read Bumblebee. She let her head fall into the pillows and blankets that covered her bed. She hadn't been picking up the phone when she saw it was him.

"I say that I'm more mature now," she looked at the still ringing cell phone, "but yet I'm acting so childish when it comes to this…" she sighed as she flipped the phone open, "Hello?"

"SARI!" it was definitely Bumblebee, "I thought you fell into a black hole or something! I've been calling and coming over, but you never pick up or your dad would say you weren't there. What's been going on? We haven't seen you in Stellar Cycles."

"I just… I've been…," she didn't know what to say, "I haven't been in the mood to talk or hang out… I guess."

"Haven't been in the mood?" Bumblebee sounded confused, "I thought… maybe you were avoiding me… I mean us… All of us… not just me… or something," he sounded hurt.

Sari could feel that, "I'm sorry Bee. There's just been a lot going on that I needed to think about and well… I know you guys have been thinking too… So I figured that you needed some space and think time… like me…"

The conversation felt so awkward.

"Yeah… yeah… we have been thinking… I guess," he mumbled, "Sari?"

"Yeah," Sari answered.

"Could you… please come over? … We miss you…," he sounded down.

"I don't know," Sari clasped her blanket.

"Please? We could play video games and rock to some music and… and…," he could think of anything else.

"Bee…," she could tell he was desperate.

"Sari," her dad called through the door.

"I've got to go," she excused herself quickly, "Bye Bumblebee."

"Call me later," he called out as she flipped the phone closed.

She sighed, "Come in."

"Sorry if I'm interrupting," he has have overheard her talking on the phone.

"You weren't," she falsely smiled.

"Is everything alright?" he could tell there was something wrong.

"Sure. Why would you ask that?" Sari tried to act causal.

He sighed and shook his head, "I was hoping that you would tell me… when you were ready, but… I can see that you aren't going to say anything," he sat down next to her, "I know that you have been avoiding the Autobots for awhile now and I know that something is bothering you. If you keep it bottled up inside, it will eventually overflow and things will be much worse than they were before."

Sari pulled her legs up to her chest, "I'm fine… really."

"Sari," he sounded stern with a hint of concern.

"Well," she looked up at him, "I just have so many things running through my head… it's getting all jumbled and I don't know how to sort it out or what to do with it."

"What is it Sari?" he probed.

"I just… I just don't know who I am anymore," she felt a tear run down her cheek.

"Oh Sari," he wiped it away, "You are who you are and finding out that you are… an… Autobot doesn't mean that you are not Sari. You have always been one and you now need to explore that part of you. Maybe if you learned more about your Cybertronian half, you would better understand yourself or at least come to peace with who you truly are." 

"Oh dad," she threw her arms around his neck, "thank you."

Bring… Bring… it was her phone was ringing again.

They released each other. Sari wiped another tear away.

"You should get that," her dad slowly got up from her bed, "it could be an emergency."

"I doubt that," she smiled, "and… thanks…"

"What are father's for?" he smiled.

"Hello?" she waited until he left the room.

"Sari," it was Optimus.

"What's up?" she tried once again to sound casual.

"Decepticons," is all he said.

Her eyes went wide and she nearly dropped the phone.


	3. Signal

**Chapter Two**

She couldn't believe it. There was a Decepticon in the Detroit area. It was only a signature reading, but no confirmed sighting. She was so sure that a Decepticon would never show their face on Earth again… not after the defeat of their "Glorious Leader" Megatron. There wasn't even a sign of them on Cybertron. There were no breakout attempts from any of the incarcerated Decepticons. It was strange that none of them even tried to escape. It was like they were waiting… waiting for something to happen.

Sari shook her head. Coming back to her senses, she quickly swerved out of the way of a building. There was no time to think… especially when flying a jetpack. Navigating more carefully, she made her way to the Autobot base without crashing into something.

"So now you decide to come and visit," Ratchet greeted her as she landed in his usually cranky fashion.

"Good to see that you're still a cantankerous old bot," Sari smirked as her armor retracted.

He smirked back, "it's been awhile kid."

"I know," Sari looked to her feet in guilt.

"Well come on," he motioned for her to follow him, "you better get in here and see what's going on."

"Right," Sari hurried after him.

The base hadn't changed much since she had been there last. Though, it did look like the game console had been touch since her last visit. There was a thick layer of dust sitting on top of the game system. The controllers sat, surprising, neatly next to the TV with their own thick blanket of dust. It was hard to think that Bumblebee could go that long without playing a video game. He was always more addicted to them than Sari ever was.

"SARI!" Bumblebee noticed her, "YOU CAME!"

Sari rubbed her one ear, "you don't have to shout. I haven't gone deaf since you last seen me."

"I thought maybe you had… since you haven't picked up your phone in forever," he crossed his arms.

"I picked up before," she defended herself.

"Yeah, but you weren't interested in talking," he huffed.

"You're acting like such a… a… protoform," she huffed back.

Before they could start going at it, Optimus interrupted, "I know you two are happy to see one another, but the reunion will have to wait."

"What's up Big Bot," Sari was more than happy to end the conversation.

"This," he pointed to the screen.

There in the middle of old Detroit sat a Decepticon symbol. It wasn't moving and didn't seem to be moving anytime soon.

"Has it moved?" Sari asked.

"No," Optimus sighed, "not for an hour."

"Yeah, he's just been sitting there like he's taking a stasis nap," Ratchet joined in.

"Maybe he broke down or something," Bulkhead suggested.

"Hmph," Ratchet snorted, "a Decepticon breaking down? There's a higher chance of me becoming Magnus."

"No need to be sarcastic," Optimus rubbed his chin in thought.

"We shouldn't be here thinking about why a Decepticon is sitting around," Bumblebee was growing impatient, "we should be out there kicking his tailpipe."

"We should first check out the situation," Sari advised, "from there we can decide on an appropriate plan."

"She's grown a few servos," Ratchet chuckled, "unlike a few bots I know," he eyed Bumblebee.

"Why is everyone picking on me today?" Bumblebee crossed his arms in frustration.

"Nobody is… never mind," Optimus sighed, "let's just go and see what's going on with this Decepticon."

"Fine," he huffed as he transformed.

"Hey Sari," Bulkhead greeted her.

"Hey big guy," she smiled up to him.

"It's good to see you. It's been really boring around here without you," he moaned.

"Sorry… I just needed some time to myself… I thought maybe you guys did too," she looked down to her feet, "What's up with Bumblebee today? He's really on the defense today."

Bulkhead looked to see if anyone was listening, "you see about two days ago. Sentinel contacted us… it wasn't good…," he sighed.

"What happen?" Sari questioned.

"Hey you two!" Ratchet called out, "You coming or not?"

"Yes," both answered at the same time.

Bulkhead transformed into his APC altmode. Sari shifted into her robot form and started up her jetpack. All the others had transformed as well.

"Move out," Optimus lead the pack as he pulled out.

The others followed close by while Sari flew overhead.

"Hey Sari," it was Bulkhead.

"Yeah," she answered.

"This is a secure line. I really want… need to tell you what happened," he started to explain, "Sentinel contacted us two days ago and it wasn't good. He said that the Decepticons were on the move."

"Did they try to break out Megatron?" Sari started to worry.

"No… Autobot Intelligence picked up a scrambled signal about a week ago," he continued, "it wasn't about getting Megatron out… it was about Earth…"

"What did it say?" she was growing anxious.

"They are completely sure," he admitted, "the signal was pretty scrambled and was barely detected. All Sentinel knew is that some Decepticons are heading to Earth… to look for something."

"What would they be looking for? The AllSpark is in pieces with most of them drained of their power," Sari tried to think of reasons why they would want to come to Earth.

"I know," he agreed, "but Sentinel was thinking it was because there's a bounty on Optimus' head."

"So is he sending help?" Sari asked.

"…," he didn't answer.

"Bulkhead," she wanted an answer.

"… he said that the Elite Guard would round up all the Decepticons they could out there… but couldn't send anyone here," he finally admitted, "there's just not enough bots to spare…"

"That's… that's… that's ridiculous!" she screamed.

"I know, I know," he tried to calm her down, "That's why we all have to watch his back extra good when we get there… I'm really hoping that this is a false signal or something."

"Me too," Sari agreed, "but," she still wondered about something, "Why is Bumblebee in such a bad mood?"

"Oh… that…," he sounded like he really didn't want to talk about it, "Sentinel asked us if we all had made our decision yet… except for Optimus… he talked to him separately. Bumblebee and I said that we wanted to join the Elite Guard… but we weren't ready to leave Earth. Bumblebee said that there were still some things he wanted to do before he went back to Cybertron. I agreed."

"Like what?" she was curious.

"… I'm not sure," he thought for a moment, "but after that, Sentinel gave a small laugh and said for us to forget about the Elite Guard now. We had our chance and we wasted too much time thinking about it."

"He… he said… he wouldn't," she was so angry she couldn't even talk.

"Alright everyone," Optimus came over the communicator, "Bumblebee and Bulkhead take the south, Ratchet and I will take the north and Sari stay overhead and relay anything you see."

"Yes," they all answered.

Sari saw them break off into their groups and headed to where Optimus directed them. Optimus and Ratchet stayed straight, but Bumblebee and Bulkhead took a sharp left down a back alleyway and sped towards the opposite of end of the abandoned street.

Old Detroit was never a place that Sari wanted to go. The buildings were crumbling and the streets were usually filled with all sorts of unsavory characters at night. During the day, there weren't many people around, but a dark alley is not the place to be at any time of day. It was true that she could handle herself, but still it's not something she wanted to do.

She shook her head. There were other things that she was supposed to be doing. What Bulkhead said… about how Decepticons would be coming to Earth… for Optimus. She had to keep her eyes open for anything that looked suspicious. Though, there didn't appear to be anyone or anything on the streets.

"Do you see anything Sari?" Optimus asked.

"No… nothing," she scanned the area, "there nothing on the street… not even a cat."

"The signal is coming from just ahead… but there's nothing there," Ratchet confirm.

"We can't see anything either," Bulkhead reported.

"Let's take this slow," Optimus was being cautious, "Sari tell us if you see anything move."

"Will do," she kept her eyes peeled.

She watched both groups move in slowly to where the Decepticon should have been. There was still nothing there, but she was still detecting the signal. They were only a block away.

"Still nothing… Nobody, except for you guys, is moving down there," Sari couldn't see a thing.

"There nothing there," Bumblebee was getting impatient, "it's just a glitch in the system… or something."

"Then we all have a glitch," Ratchet huffed.

"Maybe we're not looking in the right place," Optimus thought for a moment, "or maybe… not deep enough."

"You mean under the streets?" Sari put two and two together.

"We have to go into the sewers?" Bulkhead wasn't too thrilled with the idea.

"It's too dangerous Prime," Ratchet didn't like it either, "Bumblebee could be right. Maybe it's not a Decepticon signal."

"We still have to check it out and make sure," Optimus was adamant.

"We should all go together then… it will be narrow down there," Ratchet aired on the side of caution.

"Agreed," Optimus sighed.

The sewers… not the most desirable situation. They were close, damp and smelly… well… the smell would only effect Sari. Still, the sewers were dangerous, especially if there really was a Decepticon running around down there. But why would they be in the sewers and not on the surface? Maybe it was a trap… a trap for Optimus. The more she thought about it, the more she hated the idea of going down there.

"Hey kid!" Ratchet called over the communicator, "You coming or not?"

"Coming," she quickly went in for a landing.


	4. Sewers

**Chapter Three**

The muck was thicker than honey in winter. It clung to the feet and swished when stepped in. Just the sound alone was disgusting. It sent shivers up and down the spine. The smell… oh the smell. It hit the nostrils like a brick to the face. It twisted its way through the nares and into the mind where it brought the most horrible images to light. All the things that people had torn away were now floating by.

Sari quickly switched to robot mode, "That's better."

"Hmph," Ratchet snorted, "that's why I'm glad Autobots can't smell."

"But isn't Sari an Autobot?" Bulkhead brought up a good point.

"Well… I…," he grumbled.

"Everyone quiet," Optimus hushed them, "I hear something."

Drip… drip… drip… there was a leaking pipe dripping Sari didn't want to know what. Now that she stop and listened, she did hear other things. A slight whistling sound could be heard. It had to be the subway. Some of it was still underground. It could have been possible that it was just behind the brick lined walls. Something else was making a noise. It was a humming… like from electronic equipment.

"Is that the sound?" she meant the humming.

"No… I don't hear it anymore," Optimus sighed.

"The humming. You don't hear the humming?" she could still hear it.

"That could be from the electrical wires that run down here," Ratchet indicated to the pipe marked with the bolt and danger sigh.

"No… it's not coming from there," she could hear it coming further down the tunnel.

They all stopped and listened.

"Nope… don't hear it," Bumblebee snidely remarked.

Sari rolled her eyes, "I know I hear something. It's coming from that direction," she pointed down the tunnel.

"You think we should…?" Ratchet started to ask Optimus.

"No… the signal's gone…," Optimus sighed.

"Maybe we're out of range?" Bulkhead started to move down the tunnel.

"Hold on," Optimus ordered, "we shouldn't go any further… not without some way of telling where or if there's a Decepticon."

Optimus was right. It would have been too dangerous to precede any farther without some type of warning. If there was no signal, there was no way to tell where the Decepticon could be. Although… they could have just moved out of range like Bulkhead thought. Maybe the Decepticon was still down there… but… it was dangerous… especially if there was a bounty on Optimus' head.

"He's right," Sari agreed.

"Then let's get out of here," Ratchet didn't want to spend any more time down there than he had to.

They tried to leave as quietly as they could. But the muck underneath their feet swished and squashed with every step.

Later that night…

Sari poked at her brussel spouts. They rolled about her plate like an oblong wheel. It was strange that they looked like little cabbages, but they certainly didn't taste like them. They were bitter and left a foul after taste in one's mouth. She never really liked them, but she would at least eat a few for her dad. Tonight though, she didn't feel like eating them.

"Did everything go alright today?" her dad tried to start some conversation.

"Yeah… no Decepticon sighted," she mumbled.

"That's a relief," he sighed, "I worried when you said that there was a possible Decepticon on Earth. All sorts of things ran through my mind. I thought for a moment that Megatron might have escaped or something."

"No… he's still in Autobot lockup," she answered.

"Then why are you so depressed?" he asked.

She had already been open with him early… what not now?

"The guys received a call from Cybertron two days ago…," she looked up at him.

"And?" he wanted to know.

"There was a Decepticon signal detected, but they could get a lot of information, except…," she trailed off.

"Except for what?" he leaned in.

"There is a slight chance that Decepticon might be coming to Earth for a possible bounty on Optimus' head," she answered uncomfortably.

"By which you mean that Decepticon will be coming to Earth to capture Optimus," he translated.

"… yes… exactly," she admitted.

He sighed, "I see. I assume that Cybertron will be sending some help?"

Sari's expression must have said it all.

"Oh… they aren't even going to send an extra bodyguard or two? That's just not right," he sounded a little angry, "Optimus captured their greatest enemy and they can't even spare somebody?"

"I know," she understood his frustration.

"But that's not all that's bother you?" he could see there were still hints of sorrow in her face.

"There was something else… Bumblebee and Bulkhead… you know how I told you that they were invited to join the Elite Guard… Well when a certain Glitch-Head," she hissed, "offered them to come back again, but they both said they needed some more time on Earth before they would join. He then said the offer was void and they could forget about joining the Elite Guard. It's not right."

"No… it's not right," her father shook his head, "but aren't you curious about why they weren't ready to leave yet," he hinted.

Sari thought for a moment, then a big smile formed on her face, "May I be excused… and go out for the night?"

"Be back by 10," he warned her.

"Thanks dad," she got up and kissed him between the eyes.

"Ah hem," he cleared her throat as he looked down at her unfinished dinner.

"Right," she quickly picked up her plate and cleaned it off.

One jetpack flight later…

"Hello?" Sari called out.

"Sari," Bulkhead popped his head out his room, "What are you doing here?"

"Can't I just drop by for a visit?" she asked innocently.

"Well sure… but," Bulkhead scratched his head.

"But nothing," Sari interrupted him, "Look, there's something we've got to do."

"We?" he was still confused.

"Yeah. Me, you and Bumblebee," she started to smile.

"Huh?" he was still confused.

"Where's Bumblebee…? Never mind," she noticed that he was still thinking.

She decided to leave him to his thoughts. Not wanting to disturb anyone, she tiptoed passed Optimus' and Ratchet's rooms. It was kind of like the old days when she and Bumblebee would sneak out for some fun. Sure it was mostly trouble, but they had a good time… though… no one else did. There were the late night fights, the illegal (but for a good reason) street racing and all night video game tournaments. Those were the days… but things had changed now… or many it was just Sari. Bumblebee still seemed to be as childish…

She stopped… she didn't use to feel that way. She was just like him only a year ago. Did 'growing up' change how she was… how she felt… how she acted? For the past year, they seemed to grow apart as her mind started to mature. Was she too grown up for him?

"Sari?" Bumblebee opened the door to his room.

"Bee," she shook her head.

"What are you doing here?" he tried to act like he didn't care.

"I… came to say…," she fumbled for words, "I wanted to know if you… would…"

"What?" he snapped.

"I'm sorry," she finally said, "I'm sorry that I haven't been here… I know what happened… two days ago… and," she hugged his leg, "I am so sorry. I know it might so much to you to finally get into the Elite Guard. I'm just so sorry."

Bumblebee knelt down, "Sari… you don't have to…"

"No… I haven't been a good friend… not for a long time," she looked to the floor in guilt.

"I haven't exactly been a good friend either," he admitted, "I shouldn't have snapped at you before."

"We both haven't been very good friends," Sari smiled up at him, "Let's just forget about it and get on with our lives."

"Sounds good to me," Bumblebee agreed.

They both just smiled at each other for a moment. Not saying a word. There were really no words that could or needed to be said. It would have just ruined it.

"… Well… um…," Bumblebee wasn't quite sure what to say.

"Bumblebee?" Sari looked up at him, "You want to go and cause some trouble?"

"What did you have in mind?" a mischievous smirk appeared on his face.

Down to the Sewers…

"You know when I thought you said we were going to cause some trouble… I don't know… I thought we would race around… game video games all night…" Bumblebee lifted up his foot, "Not track through the muck of Old Detroit… again."

"Sorry Bee," Sari giggled, "but there's something that was bothering me before."

"The humming," Bulkhead remembered.

"Exactly," Sari nodded her head, "I still hear it…," she stopped and listened for a moment, "There," she pointed to the left, "it's coming from that way. I'm sure."

Bumblebee and Bulkhead looked to one another.

"I'm not crazy…," she mumbled to herself as she headed down the tunnel.

They trudged through the muck, which Sari believed was thicker than before. The humming grew louder as they proceeded down the tunnel. She wasn't quite sure what it was or what was making it, but she felt drawn to it. It grew louder and felt more regular… like a heartbeat or breathing. Up ahead there appeared to be light. It couldn't have been sunlight, the sun had already set.

"What is that?" Bumblebee asked in a whisper.

"Shall we investigate?" Sari looked back to both of them.

Bulkhead looked a little unsure, but Bumblebee looked ready to go.

As quietly as they could, they snuck to where the light seemed to be coming from. They peeked around the corner. There was a large steel door where the light was escaping from the crack underneath.

"That's weird," Sari commented as she approached.

"What do you think it is?" Bulkhead scratched his head.

"Maybe it leads to a door prize," Bumblebee sarcastically answered.

Sari giggled.

CHINK! Something wrapped around all three of them and lifted them off the ground.

"What in the Allspark!" Bumblebee tried to escape from the metal net.

"I don't think that's helping," Bulkhead pointed out.

"Shush," Sari hissed, "the door is starting to open."

It opened slowly with difficulties. It scratched and squeaked. Rust fell as it opened. The light grew brighter, but only slightly.

"Well, well… what little rats have I caught?" a shadowy figure appeared in the light.


	5. Revealed!

Maybe I shouldn't have decided to start doing this up here so late, but it just didn't feel right not writing a little tidbit of randomness. It's just so me. I also do like thanking the people that review and take their time to read. So back in all its glory, it's time for some shout outs. Many thanks go out to Silvera Hikari for the first (and only) reviewer. But, I would also like to thank everyone that took their time to read. I'll see you all next chapter.

Ahh… that feels so much better.

* * *

**Chapter Four**

"Now that I have my little rats, what should I do with them? I've always been the catch and release, but releasing these little creatures might pose a danger to me," the figure circled the net.

"Let us out!" Bumblebee shook the net furiously.

"Still not helping," Sari pulled herself on to the top, "That's better," she wasn't being crushed any more.

"Who are you and what are you doing down here?" the figure asked.

"We could ask the same about you," Sari snapped back.

"Not wise," the figure brought up there arm and pushed something on their wrist.

The net started to pull the three closer to together.

"Is it me or is this thing getting tighter," Bumblebee stated the obvious.

"I don't mind getting close, but this is ridiculous," Bulkhead didn't like close situations.

The figure sighed, "Get my point," the net stopped closing in.

"Who rigs up a net that crushes people?" Sari was getting frustrated as she switched to her human form.

"A person who likes their privacy," the figure snorted as they approached the net, "I preferred not to be… found…," they started to star at Sari, "Is… is that you kid?"

"Do I know you?" Sari growled.

The figure laughed, "I see you still have your spunk… though… you look… older."

Sari took a closer look, "Who are you?"

"I'll give you a hint. I'm always rude, I work with computers and I make people miserable," the figure smirked.

"Can we have another clue?" Bulkhead asked.

"She knows who I am," the figure pointed to Sari.

Sari thought for a moment, "Always rude… works with computers… makes people miserable… You can't be," she took a closer look at the figure.

There weren't many details that she could make out. It was rather dark and the light shining behind just made the figure darker. As her eyes adjusted, she could see that the figure was wearing a hood and only the lower portion of their face could be seen. There was a smirk on their face. it was a familiar look… Sari knew it.

"Pyrus?" she still wasn't quite sure.

The figure laughed, "So you do remember me?"

"Kind of hard to forget someone like you," Sari smiled, "It's good to see you… well sort of," she might the bad light, "How about letting us down?"

"Yeah… like five minutes ago would have been good," Bumbled added his opinion.

She just stood there, not making a move.

"Okay, okay," Sari smiled, "you can let us down now… Pyrus?"

"Don't know if I should… at least right now," she turned her back to them, "I'm in the middle of something and do not wish to be disturbed… which you have already done with all your slinking and sneaking about."

"You're still mean as ever," Sari shook her head.

"Although you've changed over the past year," she looked over her shoulder, "I haven't."

THUD! The net fell to the ground with them in it. Frantically, they pulled the heavy net off to set themselves free.

Bumblebee whipped out his stinger and pointed it at Pyrus, "I've had a really bad couple of days and being trapped in a net down in a slime covered hole in the ground has not been a highlight."

"Bumblebee stop! She's a friend," Sari yelled at him.

"That toy can't hurt me," she reached out and touched the stinger.

It instantly retracted and switched back into his hand.

"What in the…," he tried to get it to come back out.

"That virus I gave you will last for about five minutes," she explained as she walked into the light, "Come on in… you're already here. Might as well come in," she sighed.

"You gave me a virus!" he started to freak out; "She gave me a VIRUS!" he turned to Bulkhead, who backed away from him.

"Don't worry, it's not contagious," she assured them.

"It's not going to hurt him? Is it?" Sari asked quietly.

Pyrus snorted, "No… it's one of my inhibitor viruses. It just stops one function for a short amount of time. No permanent damage to any systems."

"But how did you…?" she started to question.

"Make yourselves at home," Pyrus interrupted her.

Sari followed after her into the light of the room. It was a large room that was lit by several lamps that hung or sat about the room. Four large TV monitors hung from on the far wall. A strange chair of sorts sat in the middle with six smaller monitors sitting in front of it. There was a blanket and a pillow in the corner, but they looked like they haven't been used. All sorts of wires were strewn about. They connected all the monitors together. A few pipes were cut open and that's where the wires were coming out of.

"Wow," Sari tried not to trip over the wires, "you've been a busy little bee," she admired all the work she had done, "And how did you do that?"

Pyrus didn't either hear her or was just ignoring her.

"What are you doing down here Kid?" she asked as she sat heavily down in the chair.

"Answer my question first," she looked around for a place to sit, "and I'll answer yours."

"You can sit anywhere," Pyrus noticed her search.

"Um… okay," Sari sat down on the ground.

Bumblebee just shrugged his shoulders and followed her lead. Bulkhead, on the other hand, shifted his shoulder guards down into a chair.

"Now that's what I call a portable seat," Pyrus seemed impressed.

"The answer," Sari made sure Pyrus would forget.

"Come now Sari, you know I give things that easily," she smiled, "besides, that's not really important. I think you would prefer to know why," she tapped her finger on the chair's arm rest, "I'm down here. I know that's what I want to know."

It was true… about what she said before. Sari had changed in the past year, but Pyrus had not. Her smile, which was more like a smirk, was the only thing that showed any emotion. She wore the same white t-shirt with black pants that had so many pockets. The iconic black hooded, sleeveless bolero adorned her upper body with the hood over her head. There was something different though. She wore a pair of black gloves that appeared to have seven buttons the started on the wrist and ended half way down her arm. The raised ridges looked they could have been wires or something, but Sari wasn't sure.

"Um… I would like to know what this VIRUS is going to do to me!" Bumblebee was still a little freaked out.

"If you must know why I'm down here," she ignored Bumblebee and didn't wait for Sari to decide on what she really wanted to know, "I am merely passing through. I often find places like this to "set up shop"… if you will. This is just one of them."

"But you're in a sewer," Bulkhead poked out.

"Excuse me? I don't think we've met… formally," she looked over at Bumblebee and Bulkhead.

"That's right," Sari had forgotten, "the last time you saw these guys, they were unconscious and recovering… recovering from the Pyrus Virus," she added.

"Ha ha," Pyrus laughed sarcastically.

"She infected us with another virus!" Bumblebee nearly jumped out of his skid plates.

Sari looked to Pyrus who motioned for her to explain. Bumblebee and Bulkhead had difficulties remembering that week they were infected with a virus that nearly sent them offline permanently. Even though she had explained to them a week or two after they were fully recovered, their memories must have been blocking it. Sari took in a deep breath and started explain… again, what happen and how they were infected with a virus that she just happened to name after the infamous hacker. Of course, Sari then introduced them appropriately. Bumblebee didn't seem too interested in being friendly, but Pyrus hadn't made the best first impression either. Bulkhead on the other hand, was polite. He seemed so what amused by Bumblebee's situation.

Pyrus waited patiently as Sari finished explained. She even seemed to fall asleep, but not being able to see her eyes made it hard to tell.

"So you didn't infect us?" Bulkhead was just making sure.

"I was the one that figured it out and came up with two ways," she held up two fingers, "to get rid of it without making you drool oil for the rest of your existence."

"And they appreciate that," Sari answered for them.

"Alright, so you're not the one that gave me that virus a year ago," Bumblebee huffed, "But you gave me one now!"

"I already told you. It only last for five minutes," she looked over to one of the monitors, "it's been seven minutes. The virus has probably cleared out of your system."

Bumblebee looked to his hands. There was a looked of hope on his face as he tried to switch to his stingers. Just like anytime he tried before, the stingers came out. He seemed relieved as he flipped them back in.

"See," Pyrus remarked with a smirk.

Beep… beep… beep… a little red dot appeared on one of the monitors.

"Hmm…," Pyrus brought the smaller monitors closer.

She started to touch them; like she was typing something.

"What's going on?" Sari came over to see.

"Here," Pyrus still had personal space issues, "I'll bring it up on the big ones."

The four clustered TVs came alive. There appeared pictures of the sewers that Sari, Bumblebee and Bulkhead trudged through. Three of the pictures were just the sewers, but the four, the second on the left, had two figures standing there.

"Hmm… they're back… again," she sighed as she slumped in the chair.

"That's… that's… Soundwave and Shockwave!" Sari instantly recognized them.

"But Shockwave is suppose to be in lockdown," Bumblebee looked to Bulkhead.

"Friends of yours?" Pyrus seemed bored.

"More like enemies," Bumblebee growled.

"Yeah, those guys are Decepticons," Bulkhead explained, "They're the ones that nearly destroyed Detroit. They are not good bots."

She just snorted at his comment.

"Can you get sound?" Sari was more interested in what the two Decepticons were up to.

She just pushed a button on the screen. The video feed enlarged on the big screen and the sound came in.

"They are down here. I saw them come in," Shockwave peeked around the corner, "I thought they went this way."

"The Autobot Scum must be found," Soundwave agreed.

"They are merely a secondary prize," Shockwave hissed back at them, "Don't forget our ultimate goal."

"Capture the hacker and get the virus," Soundwave answered.

"Capture the hacker… get the virus," Sari looked back to Pyrus.

"What?" Pyrus casually rested her chin on the back her hand.


	6. Boom!

I'm doing it… finally. I've been looking at my story page in Fanfiction and well… I've been thinking about the stories that I haven't finished. I had so many high hopes for this story, but lack of reviews and the show not being on anymore… it's been hard to write or find inspiration. I know what I want to do, but I doubt many people will be reading this. Oh well, I'm going to make a promise to myself and anyone that reads this, that I will finish this story and all others that I have started.

I swear!

As for shout outs, I do have two from the last chapter. My thanks go out to AvengedVeralin and AutobotBee117. It was your reviews that made me think that I at least owe it to you to finish. So here is to all the people that take their time to read this neglectful author's long awaited work.

My Thanks to you all!

* * *

**Chapter Five**

"Don't play innocent with us," Bumblebee point his finger at her, "You're working with the Decepticons, aren't you!"

Pyrus let out a frustrated sigh, "I don't know any Decepticons or who those two sewer rats are. I don't work with anybody… I'm… "freelance" if you will. Besides, they didn't say what hacker or what virus. They could be talking about anyone," she shrugged her shoulders.

That stumped Bumblebee. He pulled back to think about it.

"But they're down in the sewers and you're the only hacker down here," Bulkhead pointed out.

"They said they saw all you come down here," she came back.

"But you said that they were down here before," Sari retorted.

She got her there.

"Well I also saw others down here before… you guys to be exact," she motioned to Bulkhead and Bumblebee.

"That's because we were following a Decepticon signal," Sari explained, "We tracked it to Old Detroit and since there was nothing on the street, it had to be coming from beneath our feet."

"Oh how cute. You made a little rhyme," Pyrus sarcastically answered.

"Is she always like these?" Bulkhead whispered down to Sari.

Sari folded her arms, "Yup, nasty attitude with a side of rudeness. That's Pyrus wrapped up in a nutshell."

"Oh and you're little Miss Sunshine," Pyrus snorted, "Anyway, you've got two… Decepticons…," she tried to remember their name correctly, "lurking around here…"

"Looking for you," Sari interrupted.

"You assume," Pyrus started to push buttons on the screens in front of her, "What are you going to do?"

They looked to one another, not quite sure what they were going to do about the situation. There were three of them and two Decepticons. Two could take on one, but that would leave one of them fighting alone. It was not the most ideal situation, but what else could they do?

"We could take them by surprise," Bumble suggested.

"No good," Sari shook her head, "Remember that Shockwave took out Ultra Magnus."

"Yeah, but we took him out," Bumblebee smirked.

"It's too cramped down here. You would never be able to quietly get around them," Pyrus inserted her opinion.

"What about sneaking out?" Bulkhead asked.

"Not possible," Pyrus sighed, "There's only one way in and one way out," she pointed to the heavy metal door.

"You seem to have a lot of answers. Why don't you come up with a plan," Bumblebee huffed.

"First of all: stay calm. They don't know where we are," Pyrus started working on the monitor, "Two: don't do anything stupid or suggest anything stupid."

"My plan isn't stupid," Bumblebee grumbled.

"You think it's brave, don't you?" she didn't let him answer, "Bravery and Stupidity often go hand and hand. Remember that before you open your mouth."

"Man, she is RUDE!" he complained.

Sari rolled her eyes. Yes Pyrus was rude, but she was right. As long as they stayed hidden, the Decepticons couldn't find them. Or so she hoped. But they had…

"Pyrus," she remembered, "the light! We could see it from under the door. That's what drew us."

"I thought it was the humming?" Bulkhead thought out loud.

Pyrus eyed the door. She stood up and went over to it. Holding her hand at the bottom of the door, she cursed under her breath.

"It won't go down all the way… I didn't even notice," she went to the console next to the door, "It's jammed a little…," she looked back up to screen, "Too close."

Pushing one of the buttons on her glove, all the lights went out except for two red lights in opposite corners.

"Nobody make a sound," she hissed as she sat back down in the chair.

They all watched in anticipation as the two Decepticons scouted the area within Pyrus' cameras view. They even came close to the door which they lie only a few feet behind. Sari was holding her breath. She looked over to Pyrus to see if she was breathing. She had a serious look on her face that Sari could tell. She didn't seem too happy about the situation, but neither was Sari. Though her breathing was calm, it was short and tight… like she was having problems breathing.

"There is nothing here," Shockwave didn't sound pleased.

"This is where the signal originated," Soundwave insisted, "This is where we must search."

"We've been through these underground tunnels several times," Shockwave was irritated, "There is nowhere else to look. Maybe the hacker has set up a phantom signal?"

"Impossible," Soundwave disagreed, "These organics are not that intelligent."

"Intelligent no, but," Shockwave pointed out, "they are innovative… for such privative beings."

"I'll show you intelligent," Pyrus grumbled as she pushed something on one of her screen.

Sari watched the big screens to see what she was doing. She didn't see anything, but she started to hear something. It wasn't like humming she heard before; it was more like a high shrill beeping. It kind of reminded her of her alarm clock this morning.

"What's that noise?" Bumblebee whispered down to Sari.

"It's an ultra high frequency that few can hear," Pyrus explained as she rubbed her ears under her hood, "It disrupts radar systems and sends all sorts of signals in different directions. That way…"

"They can't tell where the signal is coming from and sending them on a wild goose chase," Bulkhead finished for her.

She turned back to him, "… Bingo," a smirk formed on her face.

"Was that the humming or beating sound that I heard before?" Sari asked.

"Humming? Beating?" Pyrus questioned, "It must have been all the wires and electrical pipes down here," she dismissed it.

Sari frowned. She knew that she heard something before. That sound is what lead them down to where Pyrus was hiding. Though, she couldn't hear it now. It stopped the moment they entered into the room. Maybe it was just the pipes and wires making noise. But it was strange to her that the humming sounded so… organic. And the beating… it sounded like a heart. She knew she wasn't hearing things, but right now was not the time to ponder on it.

"I'm getting a signal," Shockwave looked behind him, "It's coming from over here."

"No. The signal is coming from this way," Soundwave pointed down a tunnel.

"We just came from that way," Shockwave sounded annoyed.

"Now it is coming from that way," Soundwave picked up another signal.

"There's something wrong here," Shockwave scanned the tunnels, "This human must be very intelligent… this human is scattering a signal in hopes that we follow them."

"Impossible," Soundwave shock his head, "This human is supposed to be the best hacker of her species, but humans are not that intelligent."

"A female hacker," Sari eyed Pyrus.

She didn't say a word. She just sat there staring at the screen; listening to the two Decepticons arguing amongst themselves.

"It seems that this place must be abandoned," she finally spoke as she stood up, "There is only going to be one shot at this. We will have to move quickly," she headed for a panel on the wall.

"What are you going to do?" Sari came up next to her.

A sinister smile formed on the exposed portion of her face, "Make a run for… or die trying…"

"Huh!" Sari took a step back, "Aren't we just going to wait it out?"

"No…," she started to push a code into the panel, "They know I'm down here… They will find me if I stay… I don't have time to play with them," she wasn't making sense, "I don't have a lot of time as it is…"

"What are you talking about?" Sari was confused.

"I think she's got a screw lose," Bumblebee whispered to Bulkhead.

"Can't be lose if you never had it in the first place," Pyrus smirked as she headed to the other side of the room, "Here's the plan. I set this place to blow in ninety seconds…"

"WHAT?" Bumblebee yelled out in surprise.

"Hush!" she hissed in a low voice, "If they find us too soon, all will be for not. I'm going to concentrate a signal and hopefully they'll follow it away from the door. Once they are far enough we will escape. They will chase and be caught in the explosion of this place."

"I have one question," Sari sighed.

"ONE question! Just one?" Bumblebee panicked.

Bulkhead patted him on the back, "Settle down little buddy."

"Where did you get explosives?" Sari ignored them.

"You really want to know or do you want to live?" Pyrus asked in a flat tone.

"You're right," Sari shrugged her shoulders, "I really shouldn't bother asking you anything. You don't get a straight answer anyway."

"Good," she smiled, "You're learning," she looked back at the screens, "They're starting to head back the way they came. I'll just give them a little bit more incentive…," she started to work on the gauntlet she wore.

The two Decepticons suddenly turned their attention to a tunnel to their left. They spoke to one another, but they were just out of the microphone's range. They cautiously headed down the tunnel; leaving the camera's view.

"Alright," Pyrus picked up two bags from under her chair, "Get ready. Run as quick as you can and head to the surface. Don't fall behind or you'll be in the blast range."

Sari looked to the panel for a countdown, but she didn't see a clock or timer.

"Um… how much time do we have left?" she turned to Pyrus.

"NOW!" she yelled as she pushed the button next to the big metal door, "GO!"

The door lifted slowly like it was fighting gravity, but losing.

"Come on," she called to Sari as she slipped under the barely opened door.

Sari had no choice but to follow after her. She wanted to keep her eye on Pyrus. The Decepticons were after her for some reason and Sari could only guess why. She crawled under the still opening door. Looking down the tunnel, she scanned the scene to see if they had been noticed. Neither Decepticons showed their face, much to Sari's surprise. She looked to Pyrus, but she wasn't there.

"Pyrus? Pyrus?" she called softly, but there was no answer.

The door was about half way up before Bumblebee could duck under it.

"Where's the hacker?" he asked quickly.

"I don't know," Sari clinched her fists, "I took my eyes off of her for one moment."

"Figures," Bumblebee snorted, "She's probably working with the Decepticons and was going to blow us back to Cybertron."

"She probably got scared," Bulkhead was finally able to leave the room, "She does have the Decepticons after her."

"Either way," Bumblebee grumbled, "She's gone and we don't know when this place is going to blow!"

"Then shouldn't we run?" Bulkhead asked innocently.

"And there's another reason to run," Sari pointed down the tunnel.

Shockwave and Soundwave appeared around the corner and were making their way to them.

Bumblebee gulped, "Yup… let's get out of here!"

They had no other choice but to run. There was no way to fight them in the cramped quarters of the sewers. Sari turned her head back to see how far the Decepticons were behind. They were just at the door.

_Come on!_ She prayed that enough time had passed by,_ Blow up already!_

BOOM! Her prayers had been answered.

The explosion seemed to happen in slow motion. She could see every detail of the fireball. It started as what seemed to be a spark, just a small hint of life. A clear bubble shot out before the flames did. It knocked into the Decepticon pair into the wall and pinned them. The fire crawled and crept its way out of the door. It was like a lion pouncing upon its prey. It threw its entire body onto them. They were engulfed in rage of flames. They disappeared into a red and orange glow.

She felt the heat coming. They had to get out of there.

"RUN!" Sari urged them out of the tunnels.

WHOOSH! They nearly had their feet burned off as they jumped out of the gaping hole that lead to the sewers. The fire flew passed them and escaped into the air. They covered themselves to protect against the extreme heat. Bumblebee leaned over Sari, though it really wasn't really needed.

"That was a little overboard," Sari remarked as she crawled out from underneath Bumblebee.

"Could she have used anymore explosives?" Bumblebee growled as he stood up.

"It did the job," Bulkhead.

VROOM! VROOM! The sound of a motorcycle interrupted them.

Sari looked up the desolate street. A person on a black motorcycle sat there looking at them. They gave them the thumbs up and revved the engine one more time before speeding off.

"Was that?" Bumblebee scratched his head.

"Yup," Sari sighed, "That was her."

"Should we go after her?" Bumblebee transformed.

"Yeah," Sari followed suit, "We need to find out what she knows and why the Decepticons are after her."

"What about the Decepticons?" Bulkhead looked down into the charred hole.

Bumblebee smirked, "They're slag by now."

"I don't know about that," Sari was more concerned about Pyrus, "Come on. We better go before she has a chance to disappear."

"Right," both Bumblebee and Bulkhead agreed.

The three went off to where the hacker sped off. Sari could only hope that they would catch up to her. There were so many questions and the answers would be difficult to get, especially from her.


	7. Search

It feels good to be writing this story again. I was really excited when I first conceived the plot and more so when I thought to do this as trilogy. I don't know if I'll get to the third part of this story, but I do hope to. Even if it means nobody is reading it.

Alright, I'm done. So here are the shout outs for the last chapter. AvengedVeralin thank you for coming back even though I've been a bad author.

*Dusk slaps self on the hand* "Bad author, bad."

* * *

**Chapter Six**

For hours they searched. For hours they were unsuccessful. Old Detroit was big and they were only a three person team. There was too much area to cover and too many things to factor in. The buildings were crumbling but they provided enough cover to hide. And the fact that they weren't dealing with an ordinary individual didn't help either.

Sari scanned the abandoned streets. Nothing moved at all. This part of the city was long dead. Only the homeless and forgotten wondered these streets. The buildings were falling. Rubble and garbage littered the sidewalks and asphalt. Cracks lined the roads and the paint had faded long ago. It always gave Sari the creeps to be that place. It felt so hollow and desolate. She knew the hustle and bustle of New Detroit. It was comforting to her to have all those people around, though it did get overwhelming. Not the person she was trying to find. She preferred to stay as far away from people as she could. She liked the idea that she made people's lives miserable. She liked to create devious things that traveled through the internet and crept into people's computers without their knowledge. Why she did such things, no one could say.

This was Pyrus, the most infamous hacker known. She slunk through the world, not being seen or heard. That was her way. She was an enigma. No one knew where she came from or her past history. She was just something that popped up one year… well more like exploded.

It was seven years ago that her name started to be whispered. It all started with a rumor. The Gear Company was being ripped to shreds by the government for their questionable business practices. They had come into some files that mysterious appeared in their inboxes. It was never stated how they got them or who sent them, but it was eventually leaked. A hacker… a hacker named Pyrus. This hacker had pulled every dirty deed, shady deal and bribe ever taken by any member of the board and presented to the right people. The board members were arrested and sentenced to what most considered a slap on the wrist, a short jail time and fines. The many employees of Gear Co. were left without a job. Some questioned if the hacker was a saint or a demon. Good was achieved in exposing the atrocities that were being committed, but much more harm had been done.

Seven people in jail, but most had already been released and they were just a little less rich.

Five thousand people across fifteen states and three countries lost their jobs.

Who truly got justice?

"Sari? Did you find her?" Bumblebee interrupted her internal thoughts.

Sari sighed, "No… she's just seemed to disappear. I could start searching the buildings," she looked around, "but there's no way to do that... What about you and Bulkhead? Are the Decepticons down there? Is there anything left of Pyrus' hideout?"

"No…," Bumblebee sighed like her, "Only scorched outlines and charred remains of computers. Nothing useful at all," he sighed once more.

"She knows how to cover her tracks," Sari shook her head, "We should regroup and think about our next move."

"Shouldn't we head back to base and tell the others?" Bulkhead popped in.

"No way!" Bumblebee answered, "We can handle this. Those Decepti-jerks are walking junk heaps after that explosion. And as for that hacker," he snorted, "I want to personally 'thank' her for all her 'help'."

"Bumblebee," Sari rolled her eyes, "Pyrus might be in trouble. I think she needs our help. Besides, she saved you guys when… you guys…," painful memories bubbled up in her mind.

"Sorry," Bumblebee apologized.

"We're fine now…," Bulkhead pointed out, "We'll find her Sari. There's not much good we can do down here. Me and Bumblebee will come up and help you search."

Sari smiled, "I don't think that will do any good. The sun is starting to go down and it will only be harder to find her. We should do as Bulkhead suggested, head back to base and tell Optimus and Ratchet what's going on."

"Fine," Bumblebee didn't sound too thrilled.

What else could they do? Something big was going on and the rest of the Autobots had to know about it. Though there wasn't much information. All Sari knew was that there were two Decepticons looking for a notorious hacker, which she and the Autobots knew personally, down in the sewers where she was hiding.

"Wait," a thought came to her.

She remembered Bulkhead mentioning a scrambled signal that the Autobots on Cybertron had picked up. They couldn't get much out of it, except that Decepticons would be heading to Earth. Sentinel thought it may have to do with Optimus, but the actions of the two down below suggested something different. They were looking for someone with computer skills… someone that happens to be familiar with Autobot systems… someone that can create the most devastating viruses known to man.

"No…," Sari shook her head.

"You coming Sari?" Bumblebee wanted to go already.

"We have to hurry," she flew off at maximum burn.

"What's with the rush all of a sudden?" Bumblebee skidded as he tried to catch up with her.

"I think I know why the Decepticons are after Pyrus," Sari quickly answered.

"Why?" Bulkhead was slowly catching up to them.

"I'll explain when we get back to base," Sari wished her jetpack could fly faster.

One journey back to the Autobot Base…

"Optimus! Ratchet! You guys in here?" Sari rushed in without detaching her jetpack.

"What are you yelling about?" Ratchet greeted her in his usual cranky fashion.

"Where's Optimus? We have something really important to report," she tried to catch her breath.

"What is this protoform talking about?" Ratchet looked to Bumblebee and Bulkhead as they entered.

"It's likes this," Bumblebee shifted to his robot mode, "We went back to the sewers where we detected that Decepticon signal before…"

"And we didn't find anything at first," Bulkhead continued, "but then we were trapped in a net…"

"Trapped in a net?" Ratchet was having a hard time following them.

"It turned out to be a trap set by Pyrus!" Sari explained, "She's back here, in Detroit and the Decepticons are after her!"

"Yeah! She gave me a virus and I could flip out my stingers," Bumblebee flipped his out several times, "But I can do it now."

"She had all these computers and could watch the tunnels that surrounded her hideout," Bulkhead added.

"HOLD ON!" Ratchet yelled, "You three aren't making any sense. The only thing I got was that Pyrus was back and the Decepticons, that we couldn't find earlier, are after her."

"That's what we're trying to tell you!" all three yelled back.

"What is going on out here?" Optimus asked as he entered the main area, rubbing his optics.

Sari sighed in frustration.

One well thought out and put together story about their adventure in the sewers later…

Optimus shook his head, "She blew up her own place?"

Sari nodded her head, "Yup. She said she didn't have a lot of time, so she set the place to blow."

Ratchet rubbed his chin, "Not a lot of time? What did she mean by that?"

Sari only shrugged her shoulders, "Don't know. You know Pyrus as well as I do. She has her own agenda and her own thought pattern. Who's to say what goes on in her twisted mind?"

"Twisted or not, if the Decepticons are after her, it can't be good," Optimus shook his head, "She's a dangerous individual with a computer."

"She did help us when these two motor heads got infected with that virus," Ratchet tried to defend her.

"You didn't read what I read after the whole incident," Optimus sighed, "It is true that she saved Bumblebee and Bulkhead, but she was at a disadvantage and didn't have much of a choice."

"For all we know, that was just an act and she already working with the Decepticons," Bumblebee huffed.

It was hard to say where Sari stood. Pyrus was a mystery to her as well as the rest of the world. She could remember that she jumped back and forth between hating and caring for Pyrus while she worked on Bumblebee and Bulkhead just only a year ago. She was blunt, rude and apathetic towards the whole situation. She growled and huffed every time that Sari would try to look and see what she was doing. She was pessimistic about the recovery of her two dearest friends. Though, she just was being honest. She was also brilliant. She did risk herself to save those she really could care less about. She was absorbed by Bumblebee's virus infected Spark… though it was only on a virtual level. She also did stick around and help with repairs to Bumblebee and Bulkhead. Then again, she did slip away in the middle of the night.

Her motives are unknown. Why she does what she does… well… no one could answer that except for her.

"She wouldn't work with Decepticon scum!" Ratchet was yelling for some odd reason.

Sari came back to the chaos that had become the conversation.

"How do you know that?" Bumblebee huffed.

"She didn't seem too thrilled to see them…," Bulkhead pointed out.

"All an act," Bumblebee brushed off the comment.

"Guys," she tried to get their attention.

Bulkhead sighed, "You just don't trust her because she gave that virus, which you did deserve by the way."

"She gave you a virus?" Optimus looked to Bumblebee.

"YEAH! She touched me and then my stingers wouldn't come out," Bumblebee was growing more frustrated, "Someone that can do that is not on the good side…"

"Guys?" Sari tried once more, but with little success.

"Organics can't give Autobots viruses by touching them," Ratchet didn't believe him.

"Well… she was wearing some type of… clothing," Bulkhead tried to recall the appropriate word, "that seemed to be some sort of technology. But Bumblebee, why don't you tell them why she gave you that virus," he crossed his arms.

"Hey! Don't get turn this on me," Bumblebee turned his back to him, "I was only responding to the fact that she trapped us in a net that was slowly crushing us."

"Could have crushed us," Bulkhead corrected him.

"GUYS!" Sari finally yelled.

"Yes Sari," Optimus seemed more than willing to listen.

"I think we're missing the point here," she paced for a moment, "Yes, Pyrus is a very dangerous individual, but I don't think that she would ever work with someone. It took a lot of convincing to get her to help when you two were infected with that virus and even after that, she only did because she was curious about you guys. She even said it herself, she's "freelance". Whatever her connection with the Decepticons is," she sighed, "We have to find her and make sure they don't. Surely all of you can agree with that?"

They each nodded their head, save for Bumblebee whom Bulkhead had to bump to get him to respond.

"But why would they be after an organic?" Ratchet asked the obvious question.

"I think I know why," Sari lowered her eyes, "She's a notorious hacker known for her viruses. They can do just about anything. If the Decepticons were to get their hands on anyone of them could spell disaster for the Autobots. Didn't you say that no such viruses had ever been seen or heard of on Cybertron?" she turned to Ratchet.

He sighed, "Yeah… never had seen anything like that nasty bug… as she called it."

"That means that if a virus like the one that affected Bumblebee and Bulkhead were to get loose on Cybertron…," she hinted.

"A lot of bots would be in trouble," Optimus put two and two together.

"The young bots anyway," Ratchet added, "Doesn't affect old timers like me," he seemed quite proud of that fact.

"But with a person like Pyrus behind it?" Sari looked over at him.

His optics went wide, then he clinched his fist, "Complete devastation of the Autobot race…"

"Exactly," Sari sighed.

"We need to find her," Optimus turned to the computer console, "We'll search Old Detroit on a grid by grid basis. Every building and underground tunnel must be searched."

"Won't do any good," Ratchet shook his head, "We're only four bots and one technorganic," he indicated to Sari, "You know that you need a bigger search team than that for that amount of search area and the fact that none of our sensors are designed to pick up organic signals."

"Um guys…," Bumblebee was staring at the muted TV.

"Not now Bumblebee," Optimus was trying to think of a way to find the elusive hacker.

"Alright," he shrugged his shoulders, "but I thought you would like to know that hacker is on TV and is being chased by an oddly familiar SUV and tank down the streets of Detroit."

"WHAT?" everyone hurried over to the TV.

"Turn up the sound!" Sari ordered.

The volume increased and the reporter's voice could be heard.

"We bring you the latest and strangest pursuit that we have ever covered on this news station. There is a motorcyclist being chased by an SUV… the model we cannot determine at this time nor a license plate and a tank of unknown origins. The police are following the procession, but do not seem to be trying to stop it. Roger is on the street with Detroit Captain of Police, Captain Fanzone."

"Thank you Captain Fanzone, do you know what this chase is all about and what are the police going to do about it?"

"The police are currently setting up road blocks to force the individuals to stop," Captain Fanzone appeared on the TV with several police cars lined up behind him across the street, "We also have several officers waiting with spike strips if they are needed. As for why there is a tank chasing an SUV who is chasing the motorcycle… we'll find out soon enough," he sounded confident as he folded his arms.

The image flipped back to the scene from up above. The three vehicles were almost at the road block, but none of them seemed like they were going to stop. The motorcycle and its ride sped up and sailed passed through the gaps that were left in between the police cars. The SUV slowed down and the tank pulled a head. The cannon mounted on the front of the machine started to glow.

"EVERYONE GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Captain Fanzone's voice could be heard.

BOOM! The cannon released a flash of light that exploded upon impact with the cars. Both vehicles bounced over the rumble without much trouble and the chase continued.

"We better get down there," Ratchet looked to Optimus.

"Autobots!" he called out, "Transform and roll out!"


	8. Chase

Gah! I did it again! I get into one of my stories and forget about the rest… that and writer's block… MAJOR writer's block… and a new game… LOVE my new game… so addicted… Yeah… I have problems. Anyway, I've got some shout outs… well just one actually. My thanks go out to AvengedVeralin for the awesome review. Sorry I haven't updated in awhile… Please forgive me!

* * *

**Chapter Seven:**

**Chase**

Over the scene she flew. She flew as fast as her jetpack could carry her. Towards the fiery blaze and darkening smoke, she flew. The noise of emergency vehicles filled the air as she drew closer. She looked down to see a caravan of flashing lights and wailing sirens heading towards the scene. The Autobots were having a hard time getting through the building traffic.

"Looks like you'll have to walk from here," Sari looked down at the endless sea of flashing lights.

"Fly on ahead and see if you can pick up Pyrus' trail," Optimus called over the communicator, "but DO NOT ENGAGE. Just keep us up to date on what is going on."

"Right…," Sari sighed, "but what if the Decepticons have her? I can…," she started.

"DO NOT ENGAGE," Optimus repeated in a stern tone, "Just be our eyes up there."

She sighed once more, "Okay… I'll go up ahead," Sari watched as the Autobots slowly made their way through the sea of vehicles.

The smoke grew closer as she zoomed overhead. She could feel the heat of the fiery blaze below. Over the crackles and sirens, Sari could hear the cries and shouts of the frantic people trying to get the scene under control. She could almost swear that she could hear Captain Fanzone yelling over a blow horn. Though it just sounded like a gargled mess under the noise of the sirens. She wanted to jet down and see if she could help, but she knew that she had to find Pyrus before the Decepticons did. Clinching her fist, she jetted past the scene and outward to where the chase went by.

"Do you see anything?" Optimus must have seen her pass the fiery scene.

"Not yet," she called back, "but it looks like the chase went on for…" she paused, "Hold on! I see Soundwave… he's just lying on the ground… twitching…" she shuttered a little looking down at the immobilized Decepticon.

"HA!" Ratchet laughed, "I knew that she would let those slagging Decepticon get a hold of her!"

"Hold on the celebration Ratchet," Optimus warned him.

"Yeah," Sari had to agree, "There's still Shockwave to deal with and he's far more dangerous than Soundwave."

"He's probably still pretty slagged from that explosion earlier," Bulkhead pointed out.

Bumblebee snorted, "He looked pretty full charged to me."

"Doesn't matter," Optimus butted in, "We will deal with him as a major threat. No one engages him alone."

"Shouldn't we have called this in to the Elite Guard?" Bulkhead shyly asked.

There was a silence that filled the air. There had been much said behind closed doors that changed too many things. What was spoken, only the listeners knew. Propositions and sarcastic remarks, gifts and cold words fill their heads. Each of them carried the burden of knowing what they could have had. Each carried with them the burden knowing what they did not chose. Was it worth it? They still had not decided.

"Patch me through to the Elite Guard," Optimus finally said, "Sari…"

"I know," she sighed as she hovered above the building, "look for Pyrus and do not engage if I find him, but," she added, "if I find Pyrus first, I getting her out of here."

Optimus knew that he couldn't stop, "Please be careful."

"No worries Big Bot," Sari smiled, "I can handle myself."

With that she blasted off passed the downed Decepticon. There were still telltale signs of where the pursuit lead. Skid marks and crushed vehicles lined the street. It was obvious that a tank had been through there.

BOOM! Another explosion ringed through the air.

"Sari!" Ratchet called out over the comlink.

"I'm on it!" she blasted towards the glowing flames.

The heat of the growing fires she could feel through her metal skin as she approached. She circled over head, trying to see through the fire and smoke. Nothing moved below, save for the smoke and dancing flames. Sari paused for a moment. She wasn't sure which way to go. The trail of destruction seemed to end in a bellow of smoke and raging flames. Could it be that they were both… destroyed? Sari shook her head. There was no time to think like that. There was also no way that Pyrus or Shockwave would go down like that.

Ba-bum, ba-bum, ba-bum… there was a faint sound coming from below.

Sari closed her eyes to listen. All of the sirens, frantic cries and crackling of burning fires faded as she concentrated on the low sound. It started small and could barely be heard, but then it rose to her ears and that was all she could hear. It was like before… when they were in the sewers. However, it was not the quiet, easy pace from before. This beat was more frenzied and spastic. Sari took hold of her chest. She felt like her Spark would jump out if she didn't. Her eyes flew open as she tried to catch her breath. She looked to her hands; they felt cold and clammy, but there was no sweat or moisture. Her head ached and her chest burn. She felt like she was fading in black. She could fell herself beginning to fall and there was nothing she could do to stop herself.

_No… I can't go down like this… I still have so much to do…_ a voice whispered in her ear.

"Sari? Sari!" it was Bumblebee.

"I'm here," she caught herself.

"Have you found where Pyrus and/or Shockwave are?" Optimus asked.

"I...," she scanned the area below, "YES!" she spotted a figure staggering from the smoke, "I've found Pyrus, but don't see any sign of Shockwave," she started to drop down, "I'm going in to help Pyrus. She doesn't look so good."

Pyrus slowly made her way to the sidewalk and collapsed in a heap on the concrete.

"Pyrus!" Sari cried out as she landed, "Are you okay!"

"Go away… kid," Pyrus huffed, "It's too dangerous here…"

"No way," Sari came up next to her, "I've got to get you out of here!" she tried to pull her up to her feet.

"Irritating organic," a voice growled from the flames.

"Irritating alien machine," Pyrus mocked as she sat up.

From the blazing inferno and blinding smoke a figure slowly walked forth. His glowing red eye seemed to be intensified by the fire. Though it did not blink, though it did not move, though showed no hint of emotion, Shockwave's eye burned with anger. He emerged from the fire; scorch marks and tongues of flames littered his body. Pieces of his armor were cracked and broken. Sparks of electricity arched and hissed from the exposed circuitry. He was in bad shape, but he was on a mission and would allow no one to interfere. Shockwave stopped and looked down at Pyrus with an intense glare.

"Back off Decepti-jerk!" Sari stood between the two.

"Out of my way Techno-organic!" he growled as he sluggish swung his arm at her.

She easily jumped out of the way. Shockwave's movements were slow and not well thought out. He just continued to swing his arms wildly, maybe hoping to land a hit on Sari. He swung; she jumped. They danced across the street, in between the flames and ducked under the billowing smoke. Shockwave's behavior was so primal. There was no thought in his attack, but just to do so.

"What's wrong gear head?" Sari threw her hands on her hips, "Can't catch a little techno-organic?"

"No," Shockwave seemed to smirk, though he had no mouth.

He swung once more. Sari went to jump out of the way like she had times before. His arm whipped underneath her like before, but she didn't see what was coming.

CRASH! She was pinned up against brick wall by Shockwave's talon like fingers. Sari struggled and pulled to free herself from his forceful grip. The more she struggle, the more he pushed her against the wall. She could feel her exoskeleton beginning to give way and crush underneath the immense pressure.

"AGG!" Sari couldn't help but scream in pain.

"Your techno-organic body cannot handle true warfare," Shockwave mocked, "You don't belong in a fight," he pulled his arm back and clinched his claws, "You belong in the scrap heap," he thrust it forward at Sari.

"STOP!" Pyrus screamed just as Shockwave's fist was about to reach Sari, "Please," she begged, "don't hurt her. There's no way she could possibly stand up against your might," she bowed her head to him, "Please, I'll do anything you ask, but please," she looked up at him, "Don't hurt her."

"Pyrus, no… ack!" she clinched her teeth as Shockwave squeezed her.

"It's okay," Pyrus slowly stood up, but then collapsed again, "I'll go with you… wherever you want, but…," she lowered her head, "I'll too injured and tried to move… you'll have to carry me."

Shockwave remained silent as his eye shifted between Sari and Pyrus. Sari wanted to cry out, but he was holding so tightly that nothing came from her mouth. Reaching with his free hand, he wrapped his claws around Pyrus.

"Well?" Pyrus growled, "Let her go."

"Did I say that I would let her go?" Shockwave scoffed, "I don't recall making any sort of agreement."

"It was a spoken silent agreement," Pyrus sighed.

"There's no point in arguing with him," Sari was finally able to speak, "He's a Decepticon and they don't play fair."

"Hush," Pyrus hissed, "We are speaking."

"There's nothing to talk about," Shockwave started to straighten up, "You and the techno-organic are coming with me. Megatron will be pleased."

"I suppose that this Megatron is the one that put the bounty on my head?" she asked nonchalantly.

"No," Shockwave bluntly answered, "That no longer has to be paid out."

"Oh… so you were the genius that decided that the help of an inferior race," she continued to sigh, "How hard it must be for you to admit that you can't even break out your boss."

"There is nothing to admit," Shockwave brought her close to his faceless face, "You are only a means to get what I need."

"There's one problem, however," Pyrus held up her finger.

"What is that?" Shockwave wasn't all that interested.

"I am only the means to my own business," she reached out and touched him.

For just a second, Sari noticed a spark jump from Pyrus' gloved hand to Shockwave's black face.

He drew back his head with a shake, "What that…?"

His eye flashed from red to blue. His arms, with both Sari and Pyrus still in his grip, lifted above his head. His whole body was shaking as it seemed that he was having an internal battle. He was trying not to do what his body was, but he could only obey.

"What's going on?" Sari was confused.

On Pyrus' face there was a small smirk, "My 'Pretty Ballerina Virus'."

Shockwave's claws started to quiver. He didn't want to release his prisoners, but he had to finish his position. His hand reluctantly opened; Sari and Pyrus fell to the street.

"Oomph!" the both landed with a hard thud.

"Come on," Pyrus coughed as she tried to stand up, "Don't want to be stomped by those feet."

Sari quickly helped her up and to the sidewalk where they watched the show. He moved from position to position; repeating positions one through eight.

"Ha ha," Pyrus laughed, "Plie… Plie," she called out.

Shockwave obeyed her strange command. Placing his arms above his head and his heels to the back of each other, he bent his knees.

"So graceful for a lumbering machine," she turned to Sari.

Sari just looked to her and asked in a blunt tone, "Why would you make a virus that does that?"

Pyrus shrugged her shoulders, "Why not? And let's do a big finish," she ordered, "Grand Jete."

With that, Shockwave took two steps. Throwing his leg out in front of him, he jumped high into the air. His legs were parallel to the ground and he was about twenty feet off the ground. Tipping his front led down, he landed on the tip of his toe with a loud thud. The ground shook and nearly took Sari off her feet. Bringing his leg down, he placed his foot parallel to the other.

"The lights go out," Pyrus leaned back, "and the curtain falls…"

Shockwave's big, round eye suddenly went dark. He stayed frozen in the position, perfectly balanced on his feet. He appeared as statue; a graceful twisted ballerina.

"That was fun," Pyrus tired to stand up again, but fell back.

"A little help?" Sari offered her hand.

"I'm good," she decided to stay sitting for a moment longer.

"SARI!" it was Bumblebee, "What's going on over there! Did you find that hacker! What about the Decepti-jerk!"

"Throttle down Bee," Sari tried to calm him down, "Pyrus is with me and Shockwave is down."

"…," he was quiet for a moment, "YOU TOOK DOWN SHOCKWAVE!"

Sari clinched her teeth, "Not so loud. I…," she turned away from Pyrus, "I didn't… Shockwave had me…"

"Kid," Pyrus called to her, "Sorry about this."

"Sorry about what… ACK!" she felt a surge run up her spine.

Her body went numb. She couldn't even feel herself when she hit the ground. She could still hear and see everything. Trying to move anything, Sari found that nothing would obey her

Pyrus' boots appeared in her sight, "Thanks for the help kid," she bent down, "But I need to find a new place to set up and hopefully somewhere those Decepticon can't find me. Don't know exactly what they want from me," she sighed as she straightened up, "but whatever it is, I'm not interested. See you…," she paused, "… or not," she stepped out of sight.

She wanted to called out, grab at Pyrus' pants… anything to stop her, but her body wouldn't obey.

"Sari? What were you saying?" Bumblebee called over the intercom, "Are you there Sari? SARI!"

The world faded as her eyes fluttered shut.


	9. Confinement

It took some time to come back to this story. It was three reviews that reminded me that I made a promise to finish what I started a long time ago. I also have to admit that I've been working on one of my other stories… maybe not too proud to admit what it is… but I still love writing it. I've gone back and read through _Pyrus Virus _and this story and just remembered how much I was so enthused about it. So many grammatical errors though… Anyway…

I will now say my thanks and do my shouts out for the last chapter or so. My thanks go out to AvengedVeralin, Field Empathy and The Almighty Pickle Lord XD. And also a special thanks goes out to Tory and an anonymous Guest. Thanks for the kick in the pants.

**Chapter Eight**

**Confinement**

* * *

There was a tingling sensation that just wouldn't leave. It started at the base of her spine and traveled up to her skull. It buzzed as it seemed to fly about in her head. The throbbing behind her eyes had begun to settle down, but she was still reluctant to open them. She could hear muffled voices, but could not determine what they were saying. That seemed to be a good thing, in her opinion. She was sure that any loud noise would be ear splitting and cause great pain. If she could have closed her ears, she would have. The voices were growing louder, but the aches and pains were slowly disappearing.

"Sari?" a familiar voice came to her.

She opened her eyes cautiously, "Dad?"

"Oh my beloved daughter," he smiled.

"Dad," Sari smirked as she slowly sat up.

Her head was still feeling a little light and the throbbing hadn't quite gone away, but she was well enough to sit up. Optimus, Bulkhead and Bumblebee were standing about the huge exam table, while Ratchet stood at the medical console. They all seemed relieved that she was finally awake.

"Take it easy Sari," Bumblebee still seemed a little worried.

"I'm fine," she smiled, "Wait," she suddenly remembered, "Where's Pyrus!?" she cocked her head around a little too quickly, "Ouch…"

"Stay calm Sari," her father assured her.

"Yeah kid… you don't want to hurt yourself," an annoyed voice came from across the room.

"Huh?" Sari sat up to see who it was.

Lying on a bed opposite to her was a figure in black.

"What are you looking at?" it was Pyrus and she was grouchy as usual.

"A hacker that has been caught… once again," Sari smirked.

"I wasn't caught," Pyrus snorted.

"Yeah, we just peeled you off the road," Bumblebee snickered.

She huffed and grumbled something inaudible.

"Peeled her off the road?" Sari was a tad confused.

Bumblebee folded his arms and smirked, "Yeah. She was pretty helpless as she laid on her chassis. Couldn't even move as Ratchet picked her and brought her back here," he loomed over Pyrus, "Couldn't even get a comeback in. Could ya?" he snorted.

Sari could tell that Pyrus was getting annoyed, but she couldn't seem to be able to move. She growled and hissed, but there was nothing that she could do. Her entire body twitched with anger as Bumblebee lorded over her. Her tongue was sharp, but without having actions to back her up, she was just making idol threats.

"Leave her be," Ratchet growled, "She's been through enough and doesn't need some punk protoform busting her servos. Now if you don't mind," he grew stern, "I have a techno-organic and organic to look after. Out," he pointed to the doors.

"What about us?" Bumblebee asked.

Ratchet growled, "Out!"

"Jeez," Bumblebee shrugged his shoulders, "No need to grind your gears."

"Let it go Bumblebee," Bulkhead picked him up and exited.

"I'll check on you later Sari," Bumblebee called out.

Sari only smiled. She would have answered back, but words felt strange between them. What could she have said that didn't sound forced? They had for quite some time. Things had changed over the course of time… had they too?

Optimus rolled his optics, "Keep us informed on their condition," the doors closed behind him.

"If I may Ratchet?" Sari's dad's asked, "I would like to stay with my daughter."

"Yeah… sure whatever," he sat down in his chair with a huff.

"I'm fine. Really dad," she assured him.

"I know, I know," he hushed her.

Sari looked over to Pyrus. She just kind of laid there, maybe unable to move. If she was injured, Sari couldn't tell.

"Hey Pyrus," she rolled onto her knees, "Are you okay? You hurt?"

Pyrus turned away from her, "Like you truly care…"

"Now, now my dear," Sari's dad clicked his tongue, "There is no need for an attitude. My daughter was merely seeing if you are alright."

She snorted, "Please. Such sincerities died with chivalry and other 'human' decencies. Humans don't care about one another unless it gets them something," she sighed, "Humans have fallen so low… We speak so highly of our civilization, but we still have children in the streets that are cold and hunger. People still have to steal to either stay alive or prove their worth. Humans hold material things in high regards that they forget what is truly hallow. Humans are merely shells… they walk through life only trying to live up to what they perceive as reality… rarely ever truly feeling what once defined us as humans."

He shook his head and clicked his tongue once more, "Such a grime view of things. There are many good people in the world and such basic humanities are not gone. They are alive and well," he sighed, "What would your parents think if they heard you say such things?"

Her body tensed for a moment at the mention of 'parents'. There was a slight curl to her fingers like she was trying to make a fist, but her hands wouldn't obey. Turning her head away from them, she just gave snort of displeasure.

"I guess that your mouth is working good, but your body not so much?" Sari smirked.

"Sari!" her dad hushed her.

"What?" she snorted, but then noticed her dad's stern look, "Pyrus?"

"Yes…," she growled.

"… Thanks for saving me from Shockwave… that was pretty cool," she smiled at her.

A small smirk appear, but quickly faded, "Just one of my many creations… nothing more… though it is more fun to see it in action on a living machine...," the smirked appeared once more, "Wonder if Bumblebee is busy later… I would love to see what some of my other malware would do."

Sari snickered, "I don't think he would appreciate that."

"Nor would Prime approve," Ratchet eyed Pyrus.

"Just kidding," she sighed, "I imagine that even I would grow bore after a while…," she yawned.

"Getting sleepy?" Sari smirked with a yawn.

"No… just need to rest my eyes," she yawned once more.

"Same here," Sari closed her eyes, "Same here…," she drifted off.

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Ratchet got comfortable.

"Sleep tight my daughter," Sari's father whisper.

She couldn't tell how long she had slept. But her body didn't feel tingly, nor did it ache. Slowly opening her eyes, she looked to see what was going on. The lab was dark, save for the beam of light that was coming through the crack in the door. Ratchet was nowhere to be seen and neither was her father. Opposite to her, the table laid empty; Pyrus must have been lurking about somewhere. Sari could hear voices coming from the other room. It sounded like a serious conversation going on.

Jumping from the table, she landed on the floor with a small thud. Her body didn't ache anymore, but she felt weak throughout it. She had to take a few moments to regain the strength to stand. With a huff, she pushed herself up and gingerly tip toed over to the cracked door. The light was blinding, but just for a moment. She could see the Optimus pacing about in the main room. Ratchet stood watching him. Bumblebee was leaning up against the wall with a sour look on his face. Bulkhead sat next to him and appeared to be worn. Sari's father was up on a platform and seemed to be arguing something. She listened closely.

"… All I am saying is that you cannot hold her here against her will," Prof. Sumdac shook his head, "You must give her a choice. Convince her of the dangers that lie ahead," he looked up to Optimus, "I understand your concerns. There is much at stake for Cybertron and Earth…"

"Then we should do what is right," Optimus interrupted him, "I'm not going to chain her to the wall or anything like that."

"Maybe we should," Bumblebee nudged Bulkhead.

He only sighed at the comment.

Optimus gave Bumblebee a harsh glare, but then turned his attention back to Prof. Sumdac, "I will give her a choice, but when it comes down to it I need to do what is right for everyone. Including her," he added before Sari's dad could retort.

"Optimus," Ratchet stepped forward, "You know that we can't do that. We would be no better than the Decepticons."

"So what?" Bumblebee spoke up, "She's not exactly the most upstanding organic. That's what the authorities would do. Lock her up and throw away the keycard."

"That wouldn't be fair," Bulkhead once again sighed at his little buddy's snaps.

"Why not?" he looked back at him, "That human is nothing but trouble. What about all those stories?" he pointed out.

"We've all read the stories Bumblebee," Optimus sighed, "As bad as they sound… I just have a feeling that there's more to it than it seems."

"More to it?" Bumblebee looked at him in shock, "She destroyed a company! Thousands of people are out of the job and countless others since have suffered because of her!" he started to rant.

Optimus tried to calm him down, but Bumblebee refused to listen. This caused the others to start arguing and yelling as loud as they could. They are wanted to be heard. They each thought that they knew what was best. Some wanted her to stay. Others wanted her to choose. One wanted her to disappear.

Sari turned away from the growing chaotic scene. Though her body felt better, all the noise still bothered her head. The noise seemed to reverberate throughout it. It caused a pressure to build behind her eyes and made them feel like they were explode if she listened to any more. She bent down and placed her hands over her eyes. The pressure only got worse. She wasn't sure how much more she could handle. She wanted to scream to make it stop, but her voice was too weak.

Suddenly she felt a light patted on her head. She looked up. It was Pyrus. There was a small smile on her face. It wasn't snide or sarcastic. It was just a pleasant smile. Placing her hands on Sari's temples. They felt cool and soothed the growing pain. The pressure disappeared. Her head no long felt like it was going to explode. Releasing her, Pyrus straightened up.

Sari slowly stood up, "Thanks. I thought my head was going to pop off."

"No need to lose your head kid," Pyrus sighed, "Your auditory sensors were just turned up too high… probably from all that's been going on…"

"How did you… how were you…?" Sari was confused.

"Your head feels better right?" she wasn't going to explain.

Sari sighed, "Just like you… Thanks…," she added.

"Whatever," Pyrus shrugged her shoulders as she turned towards the cracked door, "They still arguing on what to do with me?"

"Yeah," Sari joined her, "They aren't sure what to do with an infamous hacker that could destroy all life on Cybertron."

"They mentioned that…," she stared off.

"Who? Optimus and the others?" Sari figured that she must have been listening to them for some time.

"No… the Decepticons," she casually said, "Their signals are easier to decode than a CPU. They been planning to come here for a long," she turned to Sari, "I'm surprised that you guys didn't pick up on them sooner. Then again… those other bots couldn't even figure out how to unscramble those messages. Kind of pathetic for an advanced alien race," she snort.

Sari crossed her arms, "You've been monitoring our communications, haven't you?"

She smirked, "Don't feel so special. I watch everything… especially if it mentions me…," she turned her attention back out to the shouting match.

"How long… how long have you known that the Decepticons were after you?" Sari asked.

"…," she really didn't seem to want to answer, "… long enough… That's… that's why I came here… back to Detroit…"

"You needed help," Sari understood.

"…," she wouldn't admit it, "I need time…"

"Time for what?" Sari remembered mentioning about there not being enough time.

Pyrus' body tensed up for a moment, then relaxed, "I just need time… These Decepticons are interfering with my work," she started to head towards the arguing scene.

There was no point in trying to asking her any further. Pyrus doesn't give answers freely. She only makes more questions.


	10. Attention

A little bit of a lull here. I have an idea of what I wanted to put into the chapter, but by the time that I wrote it all out it ended up being like fourteen pages long and over 4000 words. I thought that would have been a little bit of a long chapter. So I cut and snipped and broke it into two chapters. A short one and a little bit of a longer one. I hope that you don't mind. No reviews for the last chapter, but my love goes out to all those that took their time to read my story. Enjoy and see you next chapter.

**Chapter Nine**

**Attention**

* * *

The Autobots and Prof. Sumdac were arguing as Sari and Pyrus made their approach. It was hard to tell what they were saying. Words were being jumbled and thrown about; hoping that they reach someone's auditory sensors. They only seemed to make a ruckus. It rose to the ceiling and almost felt like it would tear it away. It was deafening.

"GUYS!" Sari tried to get someone's attention, "OPTIMUS! BUMBLEBEE! BULKHEAD!" they couldn't hear her, "DAD! SOMEBODY!" she screamed once more.

Feeling a light tap on her shoulder, Sari looked back to see Pyrus was mouthing something. From what she could tell, it appeared that she was saying she would get their attention. She headed over for the computer console that Ratchet was standing near. He noticed her, but she quickly motioned for him to keep quiet and covered his auditory sensors. She nodded to Sari to do the same. She didn't have be told twice. Both of them covered their respective ears and waited for the show to start.

Tapping a few unseen buttons on her arm length gloves, Pyrus placed her hand on the metal frame of the computer. It suddenly came alive with loudest rock music to be found on the radio. All bots and Prof. Sumdac covered their ears and gritted their teeth in pain as the music continued to blare. Pyrus took her hand from the computer and the ear splitting music stopped.

Leaning up against Ratchet's leg, she cleared her throat, "Now that I have your attention…"

"What!?" Bumblebee auditory sensors were ringing

"I'm just going to ignore him," she sighed as she looked up to Optimus, "You're the one that I need to speak too," she folded her arms.

"And I need to talk with you," he mimicked her, "Regarding this whole Decepticon business…"

"About that," she interrupted him, "I'm not exactly thrilled that you allowed two of them to make it here. Because of your…," she took a moment to think about her words, "no…," she shook her head, "because of those other bots' incompetence, those Decepticons interfered with my work. They forced me to blow up my temporary abode. They chased me through the streets of Detroit. They fired at me and nearly ruined my custom leather bolero. They caused me to crash my one of a kind motorcycle… it is completely totaled," she sighed as she shook her head in disappointment, "If those other Autobots had listened to you in the first place, then all of this wouldn't have happened. I am thoroughly disappointed and aggravated beyond belief," she gave a great big huff.

"You know about the communications with Cybertron and the Elite Guard?" Optimus asked, but then shook his head, "Of course you do. Pyrus," he looked down to her, "You know what is going on…"

She confirmed with a nod of her head.

"Then you understand why you need to stay here. If the Decepticons find you, that could spell disaster for Autobots everywhere," he explained calmly, "We need to protect you until the danger is over."

She gave a snort, "It sounds like you think that I would lower myself to such dirty work. I don't work for anyone… just me, myself and I."

"Even if they would torture you?" Bulkhead asked.

"Oh yes," Prof. Sumdac recalled his days as a Decepticon captive, "They do not mess around when it comes to things that they want. They will do anything to make sure their goals are realized," he sighed, "They are not afraid to do what it takes… no matter the cost…"

"Dad…," Sari went up to him and gave him a reassuring hug.

Pyrus smirked, "That only worked on you because you have so much to lose," she indicated to Sari, "I have nothing left in this world and whatever pain they think they can inflict," she smirked, "I've experienced worse."

"Really?" Bumblebee loomed over her, "You've experienced something worse than being torn servo from servo? Or how about having your processor picked through? Or how about," he gave an evil grin, "being squished? It would be so easy for them to just lift their foot and boom!" he motioned, "Nothing but a mushy mess to scrap off. Is that worse than anything you've ever experience?"

She just looked up at him, a half smile on her face. Holding out her hand, she almost dared him to come closer. He remember his first experience with her touch and decided it was best to keep his distance.

Pyrus seemed happy with her minor victory, "As I was saying. There is nothing that they could do that would convince me to work for them. You and the Autobots have nothing to worry about. Your…," she recalled, "sparks are safe from my diabolical creations."

Optimus wasn't convinced, "You should still stay here until the Elite Guard arrives and does a full sweep to make sure that no other Decepticons on Earth."

"Hold on Boss Bot," Bumblebee interrupted, "What do you mean by the Elite Guard? They're coming here? As in here HERE!?"

He sighed, "Yes…"

"Your boss bot here," Pyrus explained, "was able to convince that poor excuse for a blue tin can to send some bots to collect what's left of the Decepticons. Though he didn't seem to think much of your lie," she eyed Optimus, "Nevertheless I appreciate you not mentioning me and the true nature of their presence here."

"Did I just hear a Thank You from the infamous hacker Pyrus?" Sari was almost surprised.

She shrugged her shoulders, "I give appreciation when it is warranted. The fewer that know of me, the better. The sooner that this is cleared up, the soon I can get back to my business," she gave a tired sigh.

"You feeling alright?" Ratchet noticed her fatigue.

"Nothing that I'm not use to," she smiled up to him, "But as for this conversation...," she looked up to Optimus, "I do grow bored with it."

There were so many questions on Optimus' face. He wanted to just sit down and get everything straightened out. Sari knew that he wouldn't have much success though. Pyrus wasn't the type to entertain someone, but rather leave them with more questions than answers. When she decided that she didn't want to do something, it was over with. Prof. Sumdac seemed to understand what his daughter was thinking.

"Optimus," he got his attention, "I think it would be best if Miss Pyrus were to come to Sumdac Tower and get a good meal and a good night's rest. She is very pale and her body shakes. With her medical conditions, I don't think she will be standing much longer."

"Someone been snooping in my bags," she growled at him.

"I am terribly sorry Miss Pyrus," he gave a small bow, "but when I saw your medical supply bag, I had to make sure that things were intact… which they are," he added quickly, "Being diabetic and having an illness is not a good mix. You need rest and good food. Please come to my home and accept my hospitality," he gave her a genuine smile.

"Still have a glitch in your system I see," Ratchet raised his brow.

"Some things you just can't fix," she keep her stare on the professor, "Rest and food huh?" she held her belly, "Haven't had that in a long while… It will seem a little strange…," she seemed to be having second thoughts.

"Oh come on," Sari bumped her in the arm, "It will be better than sitting around here and grumbling."

This got her attention, "Better than being in a sewer anyway…," she sighed, "Alright then," she decided, "I will accept you generous offer, though don't expect anything in return."

He laughed, "I won't. This is something that I am giving of my heart. A little bit of humanity still exist in the world," he gave her a wink.

"I see…," she wasn't quite sure how to react to that.

"Looks like we're going to be bunk mates," Sari gave her a smirk.

"Starting to regret this," she sighed.

Optimus looked to Bumblebee and Bulkhead, "You two go and make sure that no other Decepticon tries to go after Pyrus. Ratchet and I will meet up with whomever Sentinel Prime sends to deal with the Cons," he indicated to a steel barred door.

"You mean we have to watch over that little…," Bumblebee started, but Bulkhead bumped him in the head before he could say anything that he might regret.

"We'll keep an optic on her," Bulkhead assure Optimus.

"Thanks," he sighed, "I just have a feeling that this is going to get worse before it gets better. At least we'll have some back up with whatever Elite Guards come."

Bumblebee grumbled quietly, but he kept it to himself. Bulkhead just sighed at his buddy's comments. Optimus rolled his optics. It was just a strange and stressful situation that they were all going to have to get over.

Hopefully things would calm down on that the Elite Guard was their way.


End file.
